


Grin and Bear It

by professor



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Crack, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst and Humor, Animal Transformation, Charles Is a Darling, Charles is a bear (sometimes), Crack, Erik vs. Bears, Erik's Manpain, Erik's Siblings Give Him Hell and Have His Back -- At the Same Time, Feels, Fluff, M/M, Manly Tears, Oh No FEELINGS, Quest, The Author Regrets Nothing, Were-Creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-06
Updated: 2012-09-06
Packaged: 2017-11-13 17:09:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/505803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/professor/pseuds/professor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Erik hates bears, and falls in love with Charles -- who is a werebear. Hijinks and feels ensue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Grin and Bear It

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nekosmuse](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nekosmuse/gifts), [Unforgotten](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unforgotten/gifts).



> For the X-Men Tales fic challenge, and also written for a prompt on the [kinkmeme here](http://xmen-firstkink.livejournal.com/8700.html?thread=19490044&%20#t19490044). 
> 
> This is also Neko's fault for starting the "Erik hates bears" fandom trope. I couldn't resist exploring the logical extension of that.

Prince Erik was the eldest of the three sons of the king of Genosha --

Well, no, he wasn’t.

That was the problem. If this were a proper tale, Erik would be the eldest of the king’s three sons.

But instead, he was the eldest of the three royal siblings of Genosha.

Three royal siblings. It just doesn’t roll off the tongue or flow out of the quill as well as “three princes” or “king’s three sons.”

So that’s where Erik figured the problems started.

*****

Erik had some hope when his youngest sibling, Prince Alex, went off on a quest to find his true love. Youngest princes _always_ went on quests and rescued a princess (and then got handed the kingdom to rule, and Erik really hope that would happen -- he’d been stuck with the job ever since his parents took off to travel the world and fight evil, and he hated ruling. Hated it.)

Alex came back after six months with his One True Love -- who was definitely not a princess.

“Do you two have to do that? I’m trying to eat here,” grumbled Erik over his morning meal, as Alex and his One True Love Armando fed each other fruit and cooed and giggled at each other.

Alex glared. “Yes, in fact, we do,” he said, and then kissed Armando, using lots of tongue.

Erik made fake vomiting noises. 

And then started yelping in pain as his ear was _squeezed_.

“Ow ow ow ow ow,” chanted Erik as his sister pulled him out of the room by his ear.

Once they were well out of earshot she stopped and glared at him.

“Really Erik,” said Moira, crossing her arms. “Why do you have to pick on them like that? Alex and Armando are in love and we should be happy for them.”

Erik glowered and clenched his jaw and looked away. He knew he should be happy for them. He did. But -- “I just don’t get why Alex couldn’t have brought home a nice princess.” Erik muttered.

Moira glared. “You’re kidding, right? You’ve slept with half the stableboys in the kingdom. You are the last person who gets to criticize Alex for falling in love with a man. And besides,” Moira continues, “Armando’s probably the BEST person Alex could have fallen for, considering. Do you know what his power is? Adaptation. He can absorb Alex’s plasma, Erik.”

Erik couldn’t really argue with that, but it was just that after his family’s close call with Wizard Shaw and Shaw’s bear army during Erik’s 16th year -- which all started when Erik’s christening ceremony got royally cocked up -- a close call about which Erik still had nightmares, Erik was all too aware of what can go wrong if you don’t follow the stories. And with him in charge while his parents were away, Erik was scared something would happen.

Not that he would in a million years ever admit it. (Even to himself.)

Moira looked at him, and sighed. “Just try.” Moira swept away, down the hallway, leaving Erik to his thoughts.

_Fuck this_ , thought Erik. Erik was going hunting. Shaw may have been years dead, after Erik’s mother had decapitated him (with an axe Erik had made her for her birthday that year), but there were still bears out there, and Erik could make sure any and all bears never hurt his family again.

*****

_Fuck this_ , thought Erik five hours later. Erik was lost in the woods. He was hungry, tired, and his favorite cape was torn in five places.

He normally went hunting with his siblings, but Alex was too busy sucking face with his new husband and Moira was too busy with her latest project -- he’d asked about it, and Moira had threatened to gut him with a wooden spoon, well excuse him for being interested in his siblings’ lives, a simple _no_ would have sufficed, thank you sis -- so Erik was lost and alone. 

Story of his life.

Erik heard a noise, and immediately dove for cover. If a bear was approaching, he would be ready.

After a few minutes, as the noises grew louder and closer, it became apparent that it was not so much a rampaging bear, as much as it was the laughter of small children.

Erik consoled himself with the thought that it could be bears _disguising themselves_ as small children -- bears were tricky like that. He should stay in the bushes to be sure.

“Come along, children,” said a bright, cheerful voice, as a man led the children into the clearing and started lecturing them on local flora.

Erik didn’t even realize his mouth had fallen open until he felt the drool trickling down his chin. He wiped it up hastily with his sleeve.

The man in the clearing was Erik’s One True Love. He was certain of it. As soon as Erik had laid eyes on the man, it felt like a piece of himself Erik hadn’t even known was missing slotted into place.

Erik really owed Alex and Armando an apology for being an asshole about the falling in love with another man thing. Possibly he should get them a fruit basket or something.

Erik was debating the best way to step out and introduce himself when the man wrapped up his lecture and --

“Come on, Charles,” said his fellow teacher -- Erik had seen her around the kingdom on his early morning runs, she was a runner herself and apparently she held a kingdom-wide record for marathoning or something -- and Charles and the children filed out of the clearing.

And just like that, Erik’s One True Love -- Charles -- slipped through his fingers before Erik could say or do anything. 

A single manly tear slid down his face as Erik felt the gaping wound in his soul from the loss.

*****

“Aren’t you being just a little melodramatic?” Moira asked him late that evening when Erik recounted the story to his siblings after he’d finally found his way home.

Erik set down the handpuppets he’d used in his reenactment. “No,” he said defensively.

“Leave him alone, Moira,” gasped out Alex between sobs, as he and Armando clutched each other and wept. Alex turned to Armando and cupped his face. “I couldn’t handle it if I lost you like that. I love you _so_ much.”

“I love you too, Alex! If that happened to us, I would search for you, I would search for you to the ends of the earth,” Armando vowed through his tears.

Moira threw up her hands and stalked out of the room.

*****

Erik woke at dawn. He was on a mission. If he could arrange to bump into that runner, he could ask her about Charles, and figure out how to track Charles down.

It was a mighty task, and would take all of his craft and guile. Luckily Erik had honed his craft and guile from years and years of hunting bears -- they were the ultimate of tricky foes, and one had to be equally cunning to hunt them. 

Erik had just finished his breakfast when Moira swept into the room, followed by Alex and Armando who looked like they were going to burst with excitement.

Moira dropped a scroll in his lap. “You’re welcome,” she said, as she sat down and tucked in to her own meal.

Erik knew better than to ask what she meant -- she wouldn’t tell him -- so he unrolled the scroll and --

And --

“That’s what I could get on short notice,” Moira said. “His name is Charles Xavier, he’s a scholar-in-residence at the local wizard’s college, and he also teaches at the wizard’s day school.”

Erik realized his mouth was still open and he snapped it closed. 

“You’re the best sister ever, Moira,” said Alex breathlessly as Armando nodded emphatically.

Moira quirked a grin. “Yes, I am.”

*****

Erik had been ~~spying on~~ observing the wizard’s college for several hours with no sign of Charles.

He couldn’t understand it. Erik had ~~threatened~~ asked several students which building Professor Xavier worked in, and this was it, and it wasn’t his day off. Where was he?

No matter. Erik would use the time to plan out, for the twentieth time, exactly what he would say to Charles. Their first words to each other would be perfect, the stuff of legends and ballads. The bards would weep.

“Er, hello. May I help you?”

Erik slowly turned around. 

Charles smiled at him.

Erik squeaked and ran off.

*****

Erik, it turned out, had been right about one thing -- his first words (or lack thereof) to Charles set the tone for what followed.

Which was Erik making grand plans, going to a place where he knew Charles would frequent -- and then promptly turning and fleeing as soon as Charles noticed him.

This went on for weeks. Erik wasn’t sure what was worse: his own disappointment in himself, Moira’s withering looks, or Alex and Armando’s sad puppy faces when they found out Erik had failed to talk to Charles, _yet again_.

*****

Until one week, it seemed like Erik didn’t even have to try to ~~stalk~~ run into Charles -- the man kept showing up at all of _Erik’s_ regular haunts.

It took Erik five days to catch on.

“Are you stalking me?” Erik blurted out when he saw Charles at the chess tables in the Royal Park where Erik liked to play.

“Well, yes,” said Charles cheerfully.

Erik gaped. He hadn’t expected the man to _admit_ it.

“It seemed like the thing to do,” said Charles. “Since after all you’ve been stalking me. So technically I think this counts as reverse-stalking.” Charles sat down at a table and started resetting the board.

“So, game?” asked Charles, gesturing at the seat across from him.

Erik sat down and took black.

Charles beat him best two out of three.

“Rematch tomorrow, then?” asked Charles, as he gathered up his things to head back the university to teach his late afternoon class.

Erik nodded. (He hadn’t spoken a word all afternoon after his initial outburst, but Charles had talked enough for both of them -- about his work at the wizard’s college, studying his own telepathy and the powers of others, his volunteering with the children -- if it had been anyone else Erik would have died of boredom but Erik found himself hanging onto every word with rapt fascination.)

“I look forward to it,” said Charles as he walked off.

Erik waited until Charles had left to perform his victory dance.

*****

“Well, _finally_ ,” said Moira that night when Erik told his siblings what happened.

Alex and Armando just clutched each other excitedly, and Erik swore he could see actual hearts in their eyes. 

*****

The chess matches became a regular thing, and slowly Erik started being able to talk around Charles.

Soon chess turned into lunches twice a week, and Erik felt confident he’d soon work up the nerve to suggest dinners.

*****

Erik whistled as he strolled through the woods (with clear directions this time), on his way to meet Charles for a picnic lunch. He was a little early, but Charles was very prompt so Erik didn’t think he’d mind.

Erik walked into the clearing and stopped dead.

There was a bear.

And there was no sign of Charles.

There was a bear and Charles was gone and the bear had eaten Charles --

Erik didn’t even realized he’d drawn his sword until he was charging across the clearing, screaming, his sword raised above his head he was going to kill the bear who took Charles from him ---

_Erik! Erik, stop!_

It took precious seconds for the words to sink in, but

“CHARLES?!” Erik gasped with relief, stuttering to a halt and spinning around frantically searching for Charles. “Where are you? I thought that bear--”

_Erik, I AM the bear_.

“What?” Erik gasped again.

_It’s true. Sometimes I am a man, and sometimes I am like this._

Erik knew there was only one thing to do.

He dropped his sword and kissed Charles.

Charles turned back from a bear into a man, and kissed Erik in return.

They broke apart, panting.

“Oh Erik!” said Charles, practically glowing with happiness. “From the first time I saw you -- but I never dreamed you would return -- I can’t believe how lucky --”

“I love you, Charles,” said Erik.

They kissed again. 

And then Charles pulled Erik down to the ground and things got rather heated from there.

*****

Erik could not stop smiling. Everything was perfect. He’d found his One True Love and now he and Charles were going to live happily ever after.

Charles smiled at him, and rolled over.

And turned into a bear again.

Erik sat up in shock. “What! Why didn’t it work?”

_Why didn’t what work, Erik?_

“True Love’s Kiss!” Erik sputtered. “I’m your true love, and I kissed you, so that should have broken the curse!”

_...Curse?_

“Yes, your cursed bear form,” Erik explained. “But it’s okay, we can find another magician to consult, maybe someone from your wizard’s college, and --”

Charles turned back into a man. He looked grim.

“I think you should leave now, Erik.”

*****

“It’s terrible!” said Erik as he burst into the second-best throne room. “Charles is a werebear!”

Moira facepalmed. “Erik, not the bear thing again.”

Alex just put his head in his hands and started groaning.

“Why is it a big deal that Charles is a werebear?” asked Armando, genuinely confused. “I mean you move metal and Alex generates plasma and I adapt and Moira’s the best shot in five kingdoms and half of Genosha’s population has some kind of magical ability.”

“Sorry Armando, we haven’t told you about Erik’s bear thing yet,” said Alex.

“I do not have a ‘bear thing’!” Erik protested. “I have a perfectly reasonable and rational dislike of bears, considering what almost happened to our family when Wizard Shaw attacked with his bear army.”

“Yes, and it was over ten years ago and Mom cut Shaw’s head off and the bears were pretty much innocent pawns in the whole thing, they’re _bears_ , when are you going to let it go, Erik?” pointed out Alex.

“It used to be funny, until I had to set up a nature preserve for bears and smuggle them there behind your back,” said Moira. “And now you are letting it interfere with your relationship?”

His siblings might have a point.

*****

Erik did what any sane, rational, emotionally mature man who has just found out his One True Love is a werebear would do -- he hid in his chambers and sulked.

He’d been doing this for about a week when Alex blew the doors down with his plasma.

Erik snarled, ready for a fight, but Alex cut him off first. “Look, you can wallow in your epic mangst later, Mom and Dad are calling on the mirror. So come talk to them.”

Erik straightened his crown and put on his third-best cape and allowed Alex to drag him to the mirror room with a minimum of grumbling.

Moira and Armando were already there, chatting with Edie and Jakob as they appeared in the enchanted mirror that took up an entire wall of the chamber.

“Erik!” said Edie, smiling brightly at him. “Tell us how you’ve been, _schatzi._ ”

Erik fidgeted uncomfortably and averted his eyes. “I’ve been okay, Mama,” he mumbled.

“Tell Mom and Dad about your _boyfriend_ ,” said Alex, the brat.

Both Edie and Jakob perked up as Erik started blushing and fidgeting more. “Erik, you’ve met someone?” asked Jakob. “That’s wonderful. What’s he like?”

Erik spluttered for a few minutes until Moira rolled her eyes and cut in.

“What Erik is trying to avoid telling you is that they are ... having a bit of an argument right now,” said Moira.

Erik should probably be grateful that Moira didn’t say _more_ but he’s finding it hard to feel at all charitably toward her.

“Oh sweetheart,” said Edie, her eyes sad. “I know we’ve asked a lot of you these past months. But we never wanted you to be unhappy. I know you two will work it out.”

“We have faith in you, son,” Jakob added. “And we look forward to meeting your young man when we get home.”

“But -- I mean -- it’s just--” Erik tried to explain.

“What is it son? You know you can tell us anything,” encouraged Jakob.

“Charles,” said Erik. “It’s -- he’s a werebear.”

Edie and Jakob exchanged a look. Erik vaguely heard his siblings leave the room, presumably to give him some privacy, as he recounted the whole story to his parents.

“Erik Magnus Lehnsherr,” said Edie. “I know you mean well, but you hurt that young man’s feelings when you told him you didn’t accept his werebear nature, that it was a curse.”

“I know, Mama,” said Erik miserably.

“Son, I know you worry about something like Wizard Shaw happening again,” added Jakob. “But your mother cut his head off and he’s dead now. Please don’t let this obsession of yours stand in the way of your happiness. Think about it.”

Erik promised he would do so, and then made his goodbyes and fled back to his room as soon as he could, to curl up into a little ball of misery.

*****

Erik was listening to petitions at court a week later when the doors to the great hall slam open and in stalked a wizard dressed entirely in white, her robes streaming behind her as she strode toward the thrones.

Erik rose to meet her and Moira and Alex flank him -- he and sibs have their differences but he knows they will always have his back.

The wizard stopped just before the dais to fling a scroll at him -- _hard_.

“I ask, your highnesses, that you consider my petition,” snarled the wizard in tones dripping with poisoned honey.

Erik, with one eye on the wizard, slowly unrolled the scroll and read it. 

And nearly threw it back in the wizard’s face.

Behind him, Alex sniggered. Moira made no noise but Erik could _feel_ the amusement radiating off of her.

Erik opened his mouth to respond but Moira was already there, plucking the scroll from his hand and addressing the wizard.

“Rest assured, Wizard Frost, that the court will duly consider your petition, which I see has been signed by every member of the faculty and staff of the wizard’s college save one, that His Highness Crown Prince Erik of Genosha will, and I quote, ‘Pull his head out of his ass and apologize to Wizard Xavier, because Charles is moping all over the place and we don’t like to see him sad, plus he is saying things like he might go back to his homeland of Westchester and if you lose me my best professor I will make you regret it, you royal _fool_ ’,” Moira declaimed in completely neutral tones. 

Meanwhile Alex behind them had moved from sniggering to full on laughter, and Armando had joined him. 

Erik was going to murder everyone in the room. He was angry. Yes, angry. And he was absolutely not picturing Charles’ sad face, how his eyes would scrunch up and his lips turn down and Erik was absolutely not feeling his heart break over the image and over his own stupid, stupid actions _damn it_ \--

Erik wasn’t fooling anyone, least of all himself.

*****

In the end it took another three days before Erik broke down and went to the wizard’s college, prepared to apologize and grovel.

“Took you long enough,” said Wizard Frost when Erik presented himself at the headmistresses’ office. “And you’re too late. Wizard Xavier’s request for sabbatical was approved yesterday. He left this morning.”

Erik dropped down in the visitor’s chair with a dull _thud_.

“He tried to quit you know,” said Wizard Frost conversationally. “I had to practically blackmail him into only taking a sabbatical. At least this way I’ll get him back at the university at some point.”

Erik was absolutely not going to cry. He wasn’t. And absolutely not in front of the headmistress of the Genoshan Wizards’ College.

“Oh for -- don’t _cry_ ,” said Emma. “Do something that’s actually _useful_.”

Erik didn’t respond, and simply continued to _not_ cry.

Emma sighed. “Charles said he was going up into the mountains, to ‘get in touch with his bear side.’” she said. “Now get the hell out of my office.”

Erik got out.

*****

Erik trudged back to the castle, dejected.

“What’s wrong?” asked Alex as he met Erik at the gates.

Erik tried to push past him, but Alex was having none of it.

“You can tell me, or I can go get Moira,” said Alex.

“Fine,” Erik spat out, and explained.

“Huh,” said Alex, after Erik had finished. “So you’re going on a quest.”

“What? No!” Erik was absolutely NOT going on a quest. Quests were for youngest princes. Erik had responsibilities and shit.

“Hey Armando!” Alex yelled. “Guess what?”

“WHAT?” came the return bellow from across the courtyard.

“Erik’s going on a quest!”

“I am not going on a quest!”

“Oh, that’s so cool!” said Armando as he ran up. “We can give you all our old questing gear, and maps, and tell you the best inns to stay in, and --” Alex and Armando dissolved into chattering, offering “helpful” advice on everything Erik would need to know about questing successfully.

Erik was most definitely _not_ taking notes.

*****

“So I hear you’re going on a quest,” said Moira after dinner that night. “Here.” She handed him a bundle of rolled-up scrolls. “I had scribes make copies of our most current maps.”

Erik opened his mouth to object but Moira continued. “And don’t say you’re not. I know you have this uber-cool, doesn’t care image you like to project. But did you ever think that might be part of what got you into this? That you couldn’t bring yourself to admit that you care, let alone tell Charles?”

Erik glared at her and snapped his mouth shut.

But he couldn’t say she was wrong.

Stupid little sisters.

*****

To avoid a big scene, Erik snuck out in the dead of night. 

When he finally stopped, several hours later, he found notes and supplies from Moira, Alex and Armando tucked into the bottom his saddlebags.

One of these years he’s going to stop underestimating his siblings.

*****

It was a three-day ride to the mountains, but Erik had never expected that to be the difficult part. 

No, the tricky part would be finding Charles. From what Wizard Frost said, Erik suspected Charles would be wearing his bear form, and these mountains were home to the bear nature preserve Moira had set up.

So Erik is looking for a bear in a haystack of bears, and he can’t kill any of them, one because it would make Charles sad and two because Moira threatened to murder him.

Challenge accepted.

*****

_Fuck this_ , thought Erik two weeks of trudging around the mountains later. (He was really beginning to regret leaving his horse at the town at the foot of the mountains.)

His plan had been all noble and shit, but really, there were limits.

He’d found 37 bears so far, and not one of them was Charles.

Erik was getting tired of apologizing to bears. Especially since they tended to roar and chase after him. He’d gone through seven capes since he’d been here.

Or maybe one of those bears had been Charles. And he just refused to accept Erik’s apology.

Erik tried not to think too hard about that possibility.

*****

Erik had just stopped to refill his water flask when he saw it.

In crude slashes, carved into a tree trunk by an amateur, were the symbols ~~C ❤ E~~ , scratched out with more crude slashes.

An amateur carver ... or perhaps a bear using its claws.

Erik didn’t even realize he was crying again until hot tears dripped off his chin.

He pulled out his dagger and carved something of his own: E ❤ C !!!!!!!!!!! With plenty of exclamation points and an underline to get his point across.

He did it three more times -- and apologized to twelve more bears -- before he found Charles.

*****

This was it. This had to be Charles, were Erik’s thoughts as he approached the bank of the river rapids.

Because the bear currently fishing for salmon on the opposite bank there looked -- there was no other word for it -- dejected. Sad, and eating methodically, like he knew he needed food but had no particular appetite.

Erik felt his heart leap into his throat when the bear looked at him and blue eyes met his own.

Erik opened his mouth, and then realized he had no idea what to say. Forty-nine rehearsals of his apology and still the words turned to ash in his mouth.

Charlesbear stared at him a moment more, and then _huffed_ and turned away and started ambling back into the trees.

“Wait!” Erik cries, desperately. He stumbles into the river, struggling to cross and reach Charles on the other side. “Wait, _Charles_ , please, I’m _sorry_ \--”

The rest of his words were lost as a swell of water crashed into him and knocked him off his feet. Erik struggled to regain his footing, or to swim, but the current had him now, and his clothing and boots weighed him down and Erik kept struggling to the surface, for sweet precious air and --

The last thing Erik recalled before falling into darkness was hearing a roar, as if from a great distance.

*****

“-- Oh! Oh you stupid, _stupid_ man! What the hell did you think you were _doing_?”

Erik couldn’t answer, because he was too busy coughing up river water.

He coughed some more, and finally, _finally_ was able to breathe again.

Erik could barely breathe and his vision was fuzzy, but he struggled to sit up and speak because _Charles_ \-- he didn’t want to lose this chance, and --

“--No, don’t _sit up_ , you fool, you’ll --”

Erik fell into unconsciousness again.

*****

Erik woke again to the crackling of a fire, and the warmth of fur.

Maybe if he kept his eyes close he could stay here forever and not deal with the real world.

_It would be nice if it worked that way, but it doesn’t. Believe me, I’ve tried. The only thing running away gets you is idiot princes who nearly drown themselves._

Erik shut his eyes tighter and leaned into the fur. 

_**Really** , Erik. _

“I’m sorry,” Erik murmured into the fur. “I’m sorry I was a jerk and I’m sorry I was scared and I’m sorry I ran and I’m sorry I let you run. I’m sorry I ever hurt you. I’m sorry for not telling you everyday how wonderful you are. I’m sorry for almost drowning and making you rescue me.”  
Silence.

Well, Erik didn’t think it was _that_ bad of an apology. He’d spent all that time practicing, after all.

_Are you really? Sorry, that is? You should look where you are, first._

Erik opened his eyes.

*****

Erik had to admit, this was probably the most impressive cave he’d ever been in. Rock crystals sparkled on every surface. Intricate carvings laced the few, practical items of furniture -- a chair, a desk, a table.

There was no bed. And Erik not snuggled up in furs, but snuggled up against Charlesbear’s fur.

_Sleeping in my bear form is more convenient. It was also easier for me to warm you up after your little swim._

Erik resisted the urge to scramble out of Charlesbear’s grip. It wasn’t fair to inflict his old reactions on Charlesbear. 

Instead Charlesbear huffed and rolled over and away.

_Honestly Erik. Do you think I can’t tell that you don’t want to be near me like this?_

Erik jerked back, stung. “I’m _trying_ , dammit. But, it’s just --”

_It’s just **what** , Erik? Tell me._

And so Erik told him all of it. About Wizard Shaw’s attack, with his army of bears, when Erik had just been sixteen, and how he’d almost killed all of Erik’s family and Erik _hadn’t been able to protect them --_

_Oh, Erik. Oh, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry._

“I just --” Erik thought about what his father had said. “I don’t want this to stand in the way of our happiness. Because I think we could be happy together. And, I want to try. Charles, I want you by my side, no matter what form you’re wearing.”

More silence.

Erik slumped over. Well, that was it. He’d laid his cards on the table, bared his whole soul, and if Charles still didn’t want him, Erik had nothing left.

Erik closed his eyes again and felt a single manly tear slide down his cheek, just as it had when he’d first seen Charles. It was fitting then, that --

“Oooff!!!” coughed out Erik as Charles tackled him. (Fortunately in man form, or else Erik might have cracked a few ribs.)

*****

“Do we have to?” whined Erik as he and Charles packed up their things, two weeks later. “I like it here.”

“So do I, love,” said Charles. “But we both have responsibilities to attend to.”

Stupid real life, thought Erik. But then Charles nudged him and smiled at him and took his hand and Erik decided it wasn’t all bad.

They took their time meandering back out of the mountains, and picked up Erik’s horse at the town at the foot of the mountains. Erik refused to let Charles get his own horse, insisting that Charles could ride with him. Charles rolled his eyes and let Erik get away with it.

*****

“Oh, you must be Charles,” gushed Armando as he shook Charles’ hand. “I’m so happy to finally meet you.”

“Dude,” murmured Alex to Erik. “You know Moira’s going to be *pissed* that you skipped the welcome home parade by sneaking in the back entrance, right?”

“You’re just jealous you didn’t think of it yourself,” said Erik. 

“Duh, you asshole,” said Alex.

The door slammed open. “There you are!” said Moira. She marched up to Erik. “Seriously, would it have killed you to ride through town? People like to see the Crown Prince.”

“It’s like you don’t know me at all,” said Erik. Moira rolled her eyes and hugged him.

“Welcome back, Charles,” said Wizard Frost, who swept in behind Moira. She strode across the room and gave Charles a hug. 

“What is _she_ doing here?” demanded Erik. He looked at Moira, for an explanation --

Moira, who was .... _blushing_.

Alex and Armando started fluttering excitedly. “Oh, it’s so romantic Erik!” said Armando. 

Erik looked from Moira to Wizard Frost. Frost smirked and put her arms around Moira. Charles looked like he was desperately trying not to laugh.

Erik really, really needed a drink.

*****

The stories were right about one thing, though.

Erik and Charles lived happily ever after.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Love in the Time of Bears](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1997271) by [firstlightofeos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/firstlightofeos/pseuds/firstlightofeos)




End file.
